Thousands of Egyptian nationals repatriated from Libya in 2025
Cairo has confirmed that over 2,600 Egyptian nationals have been repatriated from Libya since the beginning of 2025, according to the Libya Review on December 22nd.
The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the repatriation of the Egyptian migrants was conducted in coordination with Libyan state authorities and Egyptian diplomatic missions.
It revealed that 1,132 Egyptian citizens had been returned from Tripoli and western Libya, while around 1,500 more were returned from Libya’s eastern region. In the month of November alone, 131 Egyptian citizens were released from a Libyan detention centre and returned.
The ministry assured that the cooperation with Libya was compelled by heightened efforts to protect Egyptian migrants and secure their safe and voluntary return to their home country.
Libya recently initiated a similar scheme with the Sudanese government in order to complete the voluntary return of 467,000 Sudanese asylum seekers who entered the country after Sudan descended into a brutal civil war in April 2023.
Libya has become a key transit hub for migrants seeking to cross into Europe due to its close proximity to the continent. The North African country’s political fragmentation has also allowed migrant smuggling and trafficking gangs to flourish.
Since Libya is effectively split into two rival governments, it has historically been unable to mobilise sufficient resources to snuff out illicit gang activity. However, in an effort to alleviate the country’s irregular migration crisis, both east and west Libyan authorities have started to enforce migrant return programs.
Preventative measures, such as expanded anti-migration operations and a heightened border force presence, have also been implemented to ease the crisis. The European Union has bankrolled much of Libya’s anti-migration efforts.
According to InfoMigrants via AFP on December 3rd, the EU has “funded the Libyan authorities to the tune of around 465 million Euros between 2015 and 2021 to manage migration.” It also pledged a further 65 million Euros for “protection and border management” to be trickled through between 2021 and 2027.
Libya Review, Maghrebi.org, InfoMigrants via AFP
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